>  JUL    2    )968  J 

.C8T7 


IMPORTANCE    or    A    MINISTER'S    REPUTATION. 


SERMON 

DELIVERED  AT  THE  INSTALLATION  OF  THE 

REV.  NATHANIEL  HEVVIT,  D.  D. 

AS    TASTOR    OF  THE    SECOND    CONGREGATIONAL  CHURCH    OF  CHRIST 

IN   BRIDGEPORT,  CONN. 

i 
DEC.    1,   1830. 

/ 

BY  LEONARD  WOODS,  D.D. 

ProlMior  of  Christian  Theology  in  the  Theol.   Sein.  Audovor. 


AND0VE1 

PRINTED     UV     fLAGG     k X  D     OOI   I  D 

1831. 


SERMON. 


ECCL.  7:1. 

A    GOOD    NAME    IS    BETTER   THAN    PRECIOUS    OINTMENT. 

This  maxim  is  founded  in  the  nature  of  the  human  mind. 
Desire  for  the  esteem  and  affection  of  others  is  inseparable  from 
our  intellectual  and  moral  constitution.  It  is  one  of  the  affec- 
tions which  uniformly  manifests  itself  in  early  life  ;  and  it  may  he 
expected  ordinarily  to  increase  in  strength,  in  proportion  to  the 
intimacy  of  the  relation  which  individuals  sustain  to  society,  and 
in  some  proportion  also  to  the  degree  in  which  their  minds  are 
cultivated  and  improved.  It  is  obvious  that  those  who  are  con- 
scious of  a  special  dependence  on  the  good  opinion  of  others  for 
the  accomplishment  of  their  desires  respecting  their  own  welfare, 
or  the  welfare  of  their  fellow  men,  must  value  reputation  more 
than  those,  who  are  not  conscious  of  such  dependence.  And  it 
would  seem  that  those,  whose  intellectual  and  moral  powers  and 
whose  susceptibilities  for  pleasure  and  pain  are  heightened  and 
refined  by  cultivation,  must  be  peculiarly  alive  to  the  approbation 
and  esteem  of  their  fellow  men.  It  is  accordingly  found,  that 
professional  men,  being  closely  connected  with  society,  and  having 
their  sensibilities  strengthened  by  education,  generally  feel  an  un- 
usual interest  in  whatever  concerns  their  good  name.  And  no 
one  can  doubt  that  this  unusual  interest  is  altogether  natural  and 
just. 

But  on  the  present  occasion,  I  shall  confine  my  remarks  to 
the  value  of  a  good  name  in  respect  to  one  class  of  professional 
men.     I  shall  endeavour  to  show  how  peculiarly  dear  a   spotless 


reputation  must  be  to  ministers  of  the  gospel,  and  bow  peculiarly- 
important  it  must  be  in  relation  to  the  sacred  work  which  they 
have  undertaken. 

The  good  name  of  a  Christian  minister,  of  which  I  shall  here 
speak,  does  not  consist  so  much  in  his  being  reputed  a  good 
neighbour,  citizen,  or  scholar,  as  in  the  esteem  in  which  he  is  held 
by  others,  as  a  good  minister  of  the  gospel, — in  his  reputation  for 
intelligence,  piety,  faithfulness,  and  all  those  other  qualities,  for 
which  a  man  invested  with  the  sacred  office  should  be  distinguish- 
ed. 

The  value  of  reputation  to  a  gospel  minister  may  be  consider- 
ed, first,  as  relating  to  his  own  private  enjoyment.  Having,  like 
all  others,  a  natural  desire  for  the  esteem  of  his  fellow-men,  he 
must  be  gratified,  when  that  esteem  is  manifested.  And  in  con- 
sequence of  his  having  more  refined  sensibilities,  and  a  more  in- 
timate and  extensive  connexion  with  others,  than  men  commonly 
have,  he  comes,  as  has  already  been  suggested,  to  possess  in  a 
more  than  usual  degree,  an  aptness  to  be  affected  with  whatever 
concerns  his  reputation  ;  so  that  the  enjoyment  of  a  good  name 
affords  him  exquisite  pleasure,  and  the  loss  of  it  occasions  exquis- 
ite pain.  To  a  minister,  whose  social  and  moral  character  has 
been  duly  cultivated,  the  possession  of  an  unspotted  reputation  is 
one  of  the  most  precious  earthly  comforts.  Tt  animates  him  in 
bis  duties,  and  helps  to  render  his  severest  labors  pleasant.  It  is 
a  refreshment  to  him  when  weary  and  exhausted,  and  a  precious 
solace  in  seasons  of  affliction.  There  is  no  blessing  of  an  earthly 
kind,  which  can  afford  him  so  much  pleasure,  as  a  blameless  char- 
acter. On  the  other  hand,  what  calamity  is  there  which  wounds 
him  so  deeply,  and  in  so  many  ways,  as  the  injury  of  his  reputa- 
tion ? 

But  if  we  would  understand  the  chief  value  of  a  minister's  re- 
putation, we  must  consider  it  as  the  means  of  promoting  his  use- 
fulness. In  every  part  of  his  office,  the  benefit  resulting  from  his 
labors  will  be  very  much  in  proportion  to  the  character  he  sustains 
in  the  view  of  the  community.  That  this  must  be  the  case  is  ev- 
ident from  the  fact,  that  the  usefulness  of  a  ministers  labors  con- 
sists in  tho  effect  he  produces  on  the  minds  of  those  to  whom   he 


ministers,  and  that  this  effect  is  inseparably  connected  with  their 
views  of  his  character.  We  may  say  as  much  as  we  please  as  to 
what  would  be  desirable  and  proper ;  but  that  which  I  have  sta- 
ted is  a  fact ;  and  it  will  be  a  fact,  while  human  nature  remains  as 
it  is. 

For  the  correctness  of  the  representation  which  I  have  made, 
I  appeal  to  the  experience  of  those  whom  I  now  address.  When 
you  have  heard  a  minister  of  blameless  reputation  and  eminent 
piety  preach  the  truths  of  religion ;  has  not  your  reverence  for 
the' man,  and  your  confidence  in  his  goodness  given  new  force  to 
his  instructions?  Has  not  the  excellent  character  of  the  preacher 
been  associated  in  your  minds  with  the  truths  he  has  inculcated  ? 
and  has  it  not  in  this  way  been  the  means  of  impressing  those 
truths  more  deeply  and  permanently  on  your  hearts,  and  of  invest- 
ing them  with  greater  power  over  your  actions  ?  But  if  you  have 
ever  been  so  unhappy  as  to  attend  on  the  preaching  of  a  minister 
whose  reputation  in  your  view  was  not  good, — especially  one 
whose  faults  were  palpable  and  glaring  ;  has  not  this  circumstance 
detracted  greatly  from  the  benefit  which  might  otherwise  have 
been  derived  from  his  labors  ?  How  weighty  soever  the  doctrines 
he  has  set  forth,  and  how  serious  and  eloquent  soever  the  manner 
of  his  preaching  ;  has  not  the  remembrance  of  the  improprieties 
of  his  conduct  gone  far  towards  preventing  the  good  effect  of 
what  you  have  heard  from  his  lips  ? 

And  is  not  the  same  true  in  regard  to  every  other  part  of 
ministerial  labor  ?  A  minister  of  Christ  comes  to  you  in  time 
of  deep  affliction,  and  with  the  looks  and  the  language  of  sympa- 
thy and  devotion,  attempts  to  minister  to  your  comfort.  Is  not 
the  effect  produced  upon  your  heart  derived  in  a  great  measure 
from  your  views  of  his  character  ?  If  you  regard  him  as  a  man 
of  God,  and  have  confidence  in  his  goodness ;  his  conversation 
and  prayers  take  strong  hold  on  your  feelings.  Every  thing  he 
says  comes  to  your  mind  in  close  alliance  with  the  excellence  of 
his  character.  The  very  sight  of  him  when  he  enters  your  house, 
and  the  thought  of  him,  when  absent,  infuses  a  kind  of  saeredness 
into  the  sensations  of  your  heart.  Hut  have  you  ever  been  thus 
profited  by  the  visits  of  a  minister,  for  whose  character  you  have 


6 

had  no  cordial  esteem  ?  In  such  a  case,  has  not  your  mind  heen, 
in  a  great  measure,  barred  against  any  good  influence  from  his 
conversation,  and  even  from  his  prayers  ?  Have  you  not  been 
conscious  of  a  kind  of  involuntary  resistance  in  your  feelings 
against  the  most  important  sentiments,  when  introduced  by  one, 
of  whom  you  entertained  so  low  an  opinion  ? 

You  are  sometimes  desirous  of  conversing  freely  with  your 
minister  respecting  your  spiritual  and  eternal  interests.  Various 
doubts  and  difficulties  arise  in  your  mind,  which  you  wish  him  to 
solve.  You  have  a  severe  struggle  with  some  wrong  propensity, 
in  regard  to  which  you  need  his  assistance.  If  you  esteem  and 
love  him,  as  a  faithful  minister  of  Christ;  you  can,  without  reserve, 
disclose  to  him  your  inward  struggles  and  difficulties,  and  in  many 
ways  derive  substantial  benefit  from  his  counsels  and  prayers. 
But  if  you  doubt  the  sincerity  of  his  heart ;  if  you  suspect  that 
he  himself  has  corrupt  propensities  which  he  has  not  subdued, 
and  sins  of  which  he  has  not  repented,  and  that  he  is  not  ac- 
quainted by  experience  with  the  conflicts  and  enjoyments  of  the 
Christian  life  ;  your  intercourse  with  him  will  fail  of  securing  to 
you  any  important  benefits. 

A  good  name  is  of  great  value  to  a  minister,  as  it  gives  a 
salutary  influence  to  his  example.  If  his  reputation  is  unblemish- 
ed ;  his  daily  conduct, — the  whole  course  of  his  life  will  have  a 
happy  effect  upon  the  minds  of  his  people,  and  will  powerfully 
attract  them  to  copy  his  excellencies.  But  only  let  them  observe 
or  hear  any  thing  which  mars  his  ministerial  character,  and  they 
will  quickly  regard  with  suspicion  his  most  virtuous  actions,  and 
his  most  amiable  dispositions,  and  so  even  that  part  of  his  exam- 
ple which  is  right,  will  lose  its  salutary  influence. 

There  is  another  point  of  light,  in  which  we  are  to  contem- 
plate the  value  of  a  minister's  reputation,  particularly  at  the  pre- 
sent day.  The  Christian  world  is  full  of  benevolent  enterprises. 
In  most  of  these,  ministers  of  the  Gospel  must  have  a  principal 
agency.  Tbeir  education,  their  office,  and  their  influence  in  so- 
ciety qualify  them  to  be  specially  useful  in  forwarding  all  the 
great  objects  of  Christian  benevolence.  But  there  is  no  way,  in 
which  they  can  contribute  more  effectually  or  more  permanently 


to  the  promotion  of  these  objects,  than  by  the  influence  of  a  good 

name.  To  be  espoused  and  advocated  by  one  who  is  esteemed 
a  wise  and  good  man,  is  an  advantage  to  any  cause.  The  mere 
knowledge  of  this  fact  will  make  new  friends  to  the  cause,  and 
increase  the  attachment  and  zeal  of  those  who  were  friends  be- 
fore. If  a  minister  has  a  blameless  and  respectable  character ; 
every  argument  he  uses  and  every  effort  he  makes  in  behalf  ot 
a  good  cause,  turns  to  account.  On  the  contrary,  it  cannot  but 
prove  a  disadvantage  to  any  cause,  however  excellent  in  itself, 
that  a  man  of  bad  character  is  its  advocate.  All  his  efforts  to 
promote  it  are  either  paralized,  or  rendered  hurtful,  by  the  know- 
ledge of  his  misconduct.  In  this  way  Christianity  itself  has  suf- 
fered many  an  injury,  which  human  power  can  never  repair. 

Thus  we  have  considered  the  value  of  a  good  name  to  a  min- 
ister of  the  Gospel,  in  reference  to  his  own  enjoyment,  and  in  re- 
ference to  the  various  ways  in  which  he  may  be  useful  to  his  fel- 
low men. 

After  this  brief  illustration  of  the  subject,  it  will  be  easy  to  de- 
termine, in  what  light  toe  are  to  regard  those,  who  designedly  do 
any  thing  to  injure  the  reputation  of  a  Christian  minister.  Such 
an  injury  may  be  committed  by  any  of  the  forms  of  evil  speaking, 
detraction,  and  slander.  It  may  be  committed  by  speaking  ill  of 
a  minister  and  reproaching  him,  without  a  just  warrant,  and  with- 
out an  obvious  and  necessary  cause.  Some  defects  of  character 
belong  to  every  Christian  and  to  every  minister  on  earth.  The 
precepts  of  our  religion  require  us  to  treat  these  common  defects 
with  forbearance  and  candor,  ami  as  far  as  may  be,  to  conceal 
them.  If  then  we  are  forward  to  punish  a  minister's  faults  ;  if 
we  make  them  the  subject  of  free  remark  even  in  private  con- 
versation, except  when  the  glory  of  God  and  the  welfare  of  men 
manifestly  require  it ;  we  are  chargeable  with  the  sin  of  iojuriog 
his  reputation  *  We  are  still  more  culpable,  if  we  bring  accusa- 
tions against  him  without  clear  and  sufficient  evidence;  or  it  we 
exaggerate  his  faults,  giviag  them  a  higher  coloring;  than  they  d<- 


'  S-'c  the  sermons  <>f  Barrow  and  Tilloteon   on  avil  ipeakiog;  alto  tlio 
■ormon  of  Dr.  Dwight  on  Blander  .  sermon  128  in  hia  Theoty 


8 

serve,  or  representing  them   as  worse  than  they  would   actually 
appear,  if  all  the  circumstances  were  well  understood. 

Slander  consists,  generally,  in  uttering  any  kind  of  falsehood 
against  another  with  a  view  to  injure  his  interest,  or  his  credit. 
Men  are  guilty  of  this  crime  towards  a  gospel  minister,  when 
they  bear  false  witness  against  him,  or  charge  him  with  wrong 
principles  and  wrong  actions  which  do  not  belong  to  him.  So  Da- 
vid complained,  that  his  enemies  laid  to  his  charge  things  which  he 
was  not  conscious  of.  We  slander  a  minister,  when  we  ascribe 
those  actions  of  his,  which  have  the  appearance  of  being  right,  to 
wrong  principles.  All  his  words  and  actions,  especially  considering 
the  difficulties  of  his  station,  ought  to  have  the  most  favorable  con- 
struction they  will  bear.  When  we  give  them  the  most  unfavora- 
ble construction, — what  is  it  but  a  kind  of  slander  ? — We  lie  under 
this  guilt,  when  we  give  a  partial  representation  of  a  minister's 
words  or  actions,  concealing  some  circumstances,  and  so  making 
a  different  impression  from  what  would  be  made,  if  the  whole 
were  known ;  or  when,  by  our  suggestions,  or  by  our  looks,  or  by 
an  artful  silence,  we  infuse  unfavorable  thoughts  or  suspicions  re- 
specting him  into  the  minds  of  others.  We  are  guilty  of  slander- 
ing a  minisier,  if  we  either  invent  or  needlessly  circulate  ill  reports 
about  him  ;  or  if  we  easily  take  up  a  reproach  against  him,  and  go 
up  and  down  as  tale-bearers,  uttering  things  disgraceful  to  his 
character. 

These  are  the  principal  ways,  in  which  men  may  injure  the 
reputation  of  a  gospel  minister.  Now  in  what  light  must  we  re- 
gard those  who  are  chargeable  with  this  conduct  ?  In  what  light 
are  they  represented  by  the  Word  of  God  ?  Here, — where  things 
are  always  represented  as  they  are, — we  find  that  the  conduct  re- 
ferred to,  is  condemned  as  a  direct  violation  of  the  moral  law, 
written  by  the  ringer  of  God  on  tables  of  stone  :  Thou  shall  not 
hear  false  ivitncss  against  thy  neighbour.  It  is  also  a  violation  of 
that  comprehensive  precept,  so  often  repeated  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment :  Thou  shall  love  thy  neighbour  as  thyself  Who  would 
slander  himself?  Who  would  attempt  to  injure  his  own  reputa- 
tion ?  Who  would  publish  his  own  failings  for  the  purpose  of  dis- 
gracing himself? 


To  injure  a  minister's  good  name  is  to  violate  that  Christian 
rule,  which  is  approved  by  every  man's  conscience,  and  which  has 
been  pronounced   by  all  the  world  to  be  preeminently  excellent  : 
Whatsoever  ye  would  that  others  should  do  unto  you,  do  ye   also 
the  same  unto  them.     Now  would   any  one  of  you  regard  it  as  a 
desirable  thing,  that  others  should  indulge  prejudices  and  evil  sur- 
mises against  you,  and  that,  by  venting  them  in  any  of  the  forms 
of  evil  speaking,  they  should  endeavour  to  lower  you  in  the  public 
.  estimation  ?     Would  you  wish   to  have  your  character  aspersed  ? 
But  if  you  would  not  be  willing  that  others  should  do  this  to  you, 
how  can  you  do  it  to  them,  without  transgressing  this  holy  precept  ? 
The  Scriptures  make   freedom   from  the  guilt  of  backbiting 
and  slander  to  be  essential  to  the  character  of  God's  people.    The 
Psalmist  inquires  of  God  ;     Who  shall  abide  in  thy  tabernacle  ? 
Who  shall  dwell  in  thy  holy  hill  ?    An  important  part  of  the  re- 
ply is  ;  Hz  that  barkbiteth  not  with  his  tongue,  nor  takcth  up  a 
reproach  against   his   neighbour.     So  likewise  an  apostle  says  ; 
If  any  man  among  you  seemeth  to   be  religious,   and  bridleth  not 
his  tongue,  that  man's   religion  is   vain.      And    another   says ; 
Speak  evil  of  no  man.     And  if  you  wish  to  know  how  our  bles- 
sed Saviour  regards  evil  speaking,  listen  to  the  words  which  he 
uttered  :  "  Out  of  the  heart  proceed  evil  thoughts,  murders,  adul- 
teries, fornications,  false  tvitness,  evil  speakings."     He  put  evil 
speaking  in  company  with  the  blackest  crimes.     So  also  Paul,  in 
the  same  manner  with  his  divine  Master,  puts  ivhispercrs  and  back- 
liters  by  the  side   of  fornicators,   and  murderers,  and   haters  of 
God.    And  when  he  enumerated  the  odious  characters  that  should 
appear  in  the  last  times,  he  gave  evil  speakers  a  prominent  place. 
"  Men  shall  be  lovers  of   themselves,  covetous, — evil  speak-  r», 
without  natural  affection, — -false  accusers."    Such,  according  to  the 
decision  of  God's  bol\r  Word,  is  the  guilt  of  whispering,  backbit- 
ing, and  evil  speaking.    But  this  crime,  always  so  detestable  in  the 
sight  of  God,  is  attended  with   peculiar  aggravations,  when  com- 
mitted against  one  who  sustains  the  sacred  office  of  ambassador  of 
Christ,  and  is  entrusted,  in  so  important  a  sense,  with  the  interests 
of  the  church. 

Do  any  of  my  hearers  wonder,  that  the  inspired  writers 
J 


10 

emphatically  forbid  and  reprobate  evil  speaking,  and  represent  it 
as  so  heinous  an  offence  ?  Y  ou  will  cease  to  wonder,  if  you  con- 
sider from  what  sources  it  springs,  and  what  evils  follow  in  its 
train. 

First,  its  sources. 

Evil  speaking  in  its  various  forms,  being  from  its  very  nature 
designed  to  injure  others,  must  proceed  from  a  malevolent  dispo- 
sition. It  can  spring  from  no  other  source.  Can  love  to  your 
brother  lead  you  to  speak  evil  of  him,  to  take  up  a  reproach 
against  him,  or  to  do  anything  to  hurt  his  reputation?  If  you 
speak  evil  of  another,  it  is  because  you  do  not  love  him  ;  it  is  be- 
cause you  are  actuated  by  envy,  ill  will,  haired.  And  if  any  of 
you  should  endeavour,  by  slanderous  representations,  to  injure  the 
character  of  a  minister  of  Christ,  you  would  betray  not  only  ha- 
tred to  him,  but  disregard  of  the  Master  whom  he  serves,  and  of 
the  cause  which  he  is  laboring  to  promote.  The  character  of  a 
minister  is  intimately  connected  with  the  honor  of  Christ,  and  the 
success  of  the  gospel.  If  you  injure  the  first,  you  injure  both 
tire  others.  And  what  disposition  can  be  more  criminal,  than 
disaffection,  or  even  indifference,  to  the  honor  of  Christ,  and  the 
success  of  his  gospel  ? 

The  experience  of  ages  confirms  the  truth  of  this  representa- 
tion. For  there  never  was  a  man,  who  was  alive  to  the  glory  of  the 
Saviour,  and  who  cordially  desired  the  success  of  his  Gospel,  who 
did  not  at  the  same  time  feel  a  tender  regard  for  the  reputation  of 
his  ministers. 

See  then  the  nature  of  the  principle,  which  leads  men  to  as- 
perse the  character  of  those  who  bear  the  sacred  office.  The 
heart  of  man,  depraved  as  it  is,  is  hardly  capable  of  a  disposition 
more  contrary  to  goodness,  or  more  hateful  to  God,  than  that 
which  is  exhibited  by 'slanderers  ;  especially  those  who  slander 
the  ministers  of  Christ. 

That  the  conduct  of  those,  who  thus  injure  the  reputation  of  a 
minister,  deserves  to  be  reprobated,  will  be  still  more  manifest,  if 
you  consider  the  consequences  which  naturally  flow  from  it. 

In  the  first  place,  they  who  slander  a  Christian  minister,  strike 
a  heavy  blow  at  his  private  happiness.     They   rob  him  of  that 


1] 

which  is  of  more  value  to  him  than  any  other  earthly  good.  The 
injury  they  commit  extends  also  to  his  dearest  relatives  and  friends, 
and  proves  inexpressibly  distressing  to  their  hearts. 

If  men  succeed  in  their  attempts  to  injure  the  good  name  of 
a  minister,  they  will,  in  the  same  degree,  injure  his  usefulness. 
The  injury  will  affect  every  benevolent  object  which  he  aims  to 
promote.  It  will  be  a  sensible  injury  to  the  welfare  of  Aw  church. 
Every  follower  of  Christ  who  sits  under  his  ministry,  will  suffer 
loss.  It  will  be  an  injury  to  the  immortal  interests  of  all  with 
whom  he  has  any  connexion.  The  injury  will  spread  as  far  as 
his  influence  extends  ;  because  his  influence  will  be  less  salutary 
in  proportion  as  he  enjoys  less  of  the  esteem  and  confidence  of  his 
fellow-men. 

When  you  thus  take  into  consideration  the  disposition  which 
prompts  men  to  injure  a  minister's  reputation,  and  the  pernicious 
consequences  which  are  likely  to  result  from  such  conduct,  you 
will  cease  to  wonder,  that  it  is  so  emphatically  prohibited  and  so  se- 
verely condemned  by  the  word  of  God.  Your  wonder  will  rather 
be,  that  so  odious  and  hurtful  a  vice  should  be  thought  of  so  light- 
ly, as  it  generally  is  ;  and  above  all,  that  it  should  prevail  to  so 
fearful  an  extent  among  those  who  profess  to  be  Christians. 

Now  whoever  allows  himself,  either  publicly  or  privately,  to 
utter  slanders  against  the  ministers  of  Christ,  and  supposes  that  this 
practice  may  be  justified  or  excused, — with  him  I  would  seriously 
expostulate. 

Let  me  then  entreat  you,  my  friend,  to  ponder  well  the  sub- 
ject which  I  have  introduced  on  the  present  occasion.  Turn  your 
thoughts  upon  the  nature  and  consequences  of  the  conduct  above 
described.  Consider,  that  a  minister's  character  is  his  dearest 
earthly  treasure ;  and  remember  that  you  owe  it  a  just  respect. — 
Rob  him  of  his  property, — break  in  upon  him  in  the  slumbers  of 
the  night,  and  inflict  fatal  wounds  upon  his  body,  rather  than  rob 
him  of  his  good  name,  or  wound  his  character.  Suppress,  then, 
those  slanderous  words  you  are  about  to  speak.  Suppress  those 
evil  surmises  you  arc  about  to  utter,  and  those  dlshonoraM 
ports  you  are  about  to  spread.  Though  sport  to  you,  they  may 
be  arrows  and  dentil  to  him. 


12 

The  injury  you  are  about  to  commit  against  the  character  of  a 
minister,  may  also  involve  his  domestic  circle,  now  cheerful  and 
happy,  in  sufferings  not  to  be  described. 

But  I  wish  you  more  particularly  to  consider,  how  far  your 
evil  surmises  and  slanders  may  go  towards  injuring  a  minister's 
usefulness.  By  aspersing  his  character,  and  destroying  the  confi- 
dence which  the  public  repose  in  his. integrity,  you  will  do  much 
towards  rendering  his  benevolent  efforts  abortive,  and  his  talents 
and  acquisitions  worthless.  In  this  way  you  will  exert  your  pow- 
er to  hinder  the  influence  of  the  Christian  religion,  and  to  put  a 
stop  to  the  conversion  of  sinners,  the  sanctification  of  believers, 
and  the  spread  of  the  Gospel  among  those  who  are  perishing. 

To  those  who  speak  lightly  of  the  character  of  Gospel  minis- 
ters, I  must  say,  a  heavy  charge  lies  against  you  in  the  book  of 
God's  remembrance.  You  are  guilty  of  violating  God's  holy  law. 
You  are  guilty  of  doing  a  great  injury  to  a  fellow  being,  and  to 
one  who  occupies  a  sacred  place,  and  is  employed  in  a  sacred  and 
benevolent  work,  and  to  whom  a  good  name  is  preeminently  im- 
portant. You  are  guilty  of  committing  this  injury  against  a  man, 
who  in  all  probability  never  injured  you,  but  has  cordially  wished 
for  your  highest  interest.  And  are  you  sure  that  you  are  not 
guilty  of  falsehood  ?  I  will  venture  to  say,  that  at  least  a  great 
part  of  your  evil  surmises,  and  of  the  unfavorable  reports  you  cir- 
culate respecting  gospel  ministers,  are  utterly  groundless  ;  and 
that  you  yourself  would  find  them*  so,  if  you  should  ever  take 
pains  to  examine  them.  Have  you  not  good  reason  then  to  fear, 
lest  you  should  subject  yourself  to  the  condemnation  of  those  who 
retail  falsehood  and  calumny? 

And  is  not  such  conduct  stamped  with  cowardice  and  base- 
ness ?  If  you  reproach  and  insult  a  minister  to  his  face,  you 
may  indeed  be  guilty  of  impudence  and  rudeness.  Still  your 
conduct  may  have  some  appearance  of  courage  and  manhood. 
But  to  say  things  against  him  behind  his  back,  when  he  can  have 
no  opportunity  to  defend  himself;  to  avoid  fair  and  open  combat, 
and  to  attack  him  in  the  dark, — what  is  this  but  a  compound  of 
cruelty  and  meanness  ?  What  but  the  lurking  warfare  of  the  sav- 
age, or  the  midnight  assassin  ? 


13 

Such,  and  more  than  I  can  now  set  forth,  is  the  guilt  of  de- 
signedly injuring  the  good  name  of  a  gospel  minister.  Such,  I 
must  say,  is  the  guilt  of  injuring  the  good  name  of  any  one 
who  hears  the  sacred  office.  Some  ministers  of  the  present  day 
reject  the  doctrines  which  were  held  sacred  by  the  Reformers,  and 
by  the  Fathers  of  New  England.  But  have  they,  on  this  account, 
forfeited  their  title  to  be  spoken  of  with  truth,  and  to  be  treated 
with  candor  and  kindness  ?  Should  there  be  any  in  our  reli- 
gious community,  who  think  it  allowable  to  misrepresent  the  con- 
duct, or  to  stigmatize  the  character  of  a  minister,  because  he 
rejects  those  doctrines  which  were  held  by  our  Fathers,  and 
which  we  regard  as  evangelical ; — to  such  I  beg  leave  to  say  : 
I  do  indeed  consider  a  minister  who  rejects  these  doctrines,  to  be 
in  a  great  error.  But  can  it  be  proper  to  oppose  error  by  slan- 
der, instead  of  argument ;  or  to  attempt  to  promote  the  cause  of 
Christianity,  by  transgressing  one  of  its  fundamental  laws  ?  These 
are  not  the  weapons  of  our  warfare.  Say, — if  such  is  your  be- 
lief,— that  a  minister's  opinions  are,  in  your  view,  erroneous,  and 
then  prove  them  to  be  so  by  sober  argument.  But  what  right 
have  you  to  load  him  with  reproach  and  calumny,  or  in  any 
way  to  injure  his  character?  As  well  may  you  steal  his  proper- 
ty. Do  you  say,  his  property  is  his  own  ?  So  is  his  reputation. 
And  you  have  no  more  right  to  deprive  him  of  this  by  slander, 
than  of  that  by  theft. 

Suppose  some  one  should  whisper,  that  a  man's  estate  was 
procured  by  dishonest  means,  and  that  in  justice  it  does  not  be- 
long to  him  ?  Would  this  justify  you  in  stealing  it  from  him  ? 
If  he  did  wrong  in  getting  his  estate,  make  it  appear  before  a  pro- 
per tribunal,  a  court  of  justice,  and  let  that  court  of  justice  take 
away  his  property,  and  punish  him  for  his  dishonesty.  But  who 
has  a  right  to  do  this  in  his  private  capacity  ?  So,  if  it  be  a  fact 
that  a  minister  has  an  unmerited  reputation,  give  proof  of  this  fact 
to  a  proper  tribunal,  and  let  his  reputation  be  taken  from  him  by 
a  fair  trial,  in  open  day,  and  not  by  stealth  under  the  cover  of 
dark:  i 

I  have  made  these  remarks  in  regard  to  any  minister.  But 
they  must  have  a  special   emphasis   in   relation   to  one,  who  cor- 


14 

dially  embraces  the  doctrines  of  the  gospel,  who  is  earnestly  en- 
gaged in  his  work,  and  who  discharges  the  duties  of  his  sacred 
calling  with  fidelity.  To  slander  him  who  diligently  watches  for 
sonls, — to  injure  the  reputation  of  him  who  is  truly  a  spiritual 
guide,  and  who  desires  nothing  so  much  as  the  salvation  of  sin- 
ners, betrays  a  perverseness  of  disposition  which  I  shall  not  at- 
tempt to  portray. 

Possibly  some  one  may  say  within  himself,  that  he  cannot 
submit  to  such  restraints  of  his  natural  liberty  ;  that  his  tongue  is 
his  own,  and  that  he  shall  use  it  as  he  pleases. — But  I  must  tell 
you,  my  friend,  that  your  tongue  is  no  more  your  own,  than  your 
hands  are  ;  and  that  you  have  no  more  right  to  use  the  former  as 
you  please,  than  the  latter.  You  may  as  well  smite  and  wound  a 
gospel  minister  with  your  hands,  as  with  your  tongue.  But  what 
right  have  you  to  pursue  any  course  of  conduct  contrary  to  the 
commands  of  the  God  who  made  you  ?  He  asserts  an  absolute 
authority  over  all  the  faculties  of  your  mind,  and  all  the  mem- 
bers of  your  body,  and  especially  over  your  tongue.  And  to  as- 
sert the  right  to  speak  evil  of  a  gospel  minister,  and  thus  to  in- 
jure his  reputation,  is  to  assert  the  right  to  sin  against  God. 

But  perhaps  you  may  plead,  that  the  particular  minister  of 
whom  you  are  disposed  to  speak  evil,  has  failings,  of  which  you 
cannot,  without  affectation,  pretend  to  be  ignorant.  And  besides 
this,  you  may  perhaps  complain,  that  he  has  in  some  way  given 
you  offence. 

Be  it  so  then,  that  he  is  obviously  subject  to  failings,  and  that 
he  has  committed  some  personal  offence  against  you.  The  Lord 
Jesus  points  out  the  course  for  you  to  pursue  in  such  a  case,  by 
an  express  precept.  He  commands  you  to  go  to  him  who  has 
offended  you,  and  tell  him  his  faults  between  you  and  him  alone. 
Have  you  complied  with  this  just  and  holy  command  ?  Have  you 
kindly  and  faithfully  endeavoured  to  convince  him  of  his  miscon- 
duct, to  correct  his  faults,  and  improve  his  character? 

I  have  no  disposition  to  deny  that  every  minister  of  the  gos- 
pel has  failings.  And,  my  dear  friend,  whom  I  hear  complain- 
ing of  the  failings  of  a  Christian  minister,  have   you  no  failings  ? 


Anil  how  would  you   desire  that  your  failings  should  be  treated  ? 
Treat  his  in  the  same  manner. 

But  do  you  know  with  what  heart-felt  grief  he  reflects  upon 
his  failings,  and  how  often  he  has  confessed  them,  and  wept  over 
them  before  God  ;  how  sincerely  he  abhors  himself,  and  how 
deeply  he  is  humbled  on  account  of  them  ?  Have  you  in  like 
manner  confessed  and  mourned  over  your  failings  ? 

The  pious  minister,  of  whom  you  complain,  has  failings  in- 
deed. But,  with  all  his  failings,  God  has  put  him  into  the  min- 
istry, and  called  him  to  engage  in  the  most  sacred  work  on  earth. 
And  God,  though  infinitely  holy,  bears  with  his  failings,  and  gra- 
ciously forgives  them.  And  will  you  reproach  a  penitent  with 
those  failings,  which  a  holy  and  merciful  God  freely  forgives  ? 
"  It  is  God  that  justifieth  ;  who  is  he  that  condemneth  ?"  That 
Christian  minister  is  God's  servant,  not  yours.  And  the  God 
whom  he  serves,  and  to  whom  he  is  accountable,  has  blotted  out 
his  sins,  and  will  never  remember  them  against  him.  And  who 
art  thou,  that  thou  shouldst  try  to  undo  what  the  God  of  Heaven 
has  done  ? — that  thou  shouldst  remember,  and  magnify,  and  bla- 
zon abroad  those  faults,  which  God  Almighty  chooses  to  pardon 
and  forget? 

I  grant,  once  more,  that  the  minister  whom  you  reproach, 
has  failings  and  weaknesses  of  character  ;  yea,  many  more  than 
you  have  ever  noticed.  But  does  he  not  possess  excellencies 
also  ?  Is  there  not  reason  to  think,  that  he  is  a  friend  and  follow- 
er of  Jesus  ;  that  he  cherishes  a  tender  concern  for  the  salvation  of 
sinners,  and  the  prosperity  of  the  Church  ;  and  that  he  is  willing  to 
spend  and  be  spent  in  the  cause  of  human  happiness?  When  he 
sins,  does  he  not  repent,  and  make  confession,  and  repair  to  his 
heavenly  advocate  for  pardon  and  cleansing  ?  Now  is  it  right, 
that  you  should  overlook  his  piety  to  God,  his  benevolence  to 
men,  his  penitence,  his  fidelity,  and  usefulness — can  it  be  right 
that  you  should  overlook  all  these  good  qualities,  and  continually 
dwell  upon  his  faults,  and  magnify  and  proclaim  them,  as  though 
they  constituted  his  whole  character  ;  and  that  you  should  thus 
denv  him  what  in  justice  and  truth  belongs  to  him  ? 

But  as  to  the  particular  faults  which  you  impute  to  him, — are 


16 

you  sure  that  they  really  belong  to  him  ?  Is  it  a  matter  of  cer- 
tain knowledge  with  you,  or  is  it  a  matter  of  hear-say,  or  suspi- 
cion ?  Do  your  accusations  rest  on  clear  evidence  of  his  guilt — 
evidence  at  hand — evidence  which  you  are  able  to  produce  ?  Or 
do  they  spring  from  some  groundless  report,  or  some  unhallowed 
feeling  in  your  own  breast  ? 

To  those  who  are  disposed  to  treat  the  reputation  of  a  Chris- 
tian minister  either  injuriously  or  lightly,  I  have  still  one  word 
more.  Remember  then,  that  there  is  a  God  who  judgeth  in  the 
earth,  and  that  he  will  recompense  you  for  the  injury  you  are  do- 
ing to  the  character  of  his  servants  ?  "  With  what  measure  ye 
mete,  it  shall  be  measured  to  you  again  ?"  It  may  not  be  long 
before  your  actions  and  your  motives  shall  be  treated  with  the 
same  unsparing  severity  which  you  show  to  others.  Your  char- 
acter, to  which  you  are  so  alive,  may  soon  be  blackened  by 
the  foulest  aspersions.  And  if  you  persist  in  the  practice  of  evil 
speaking,  you  will  by  and  by  be  subjected  to  general  reproach 
and  hatred,  which  will  be  the  more  insupportable  to  you,  because 
you  will  feel  it  to  be  just.  You  will  be  regarded  as  a  common  enemy. 
An  rttack  will  ere  long  be  made  upon  you,  which  you  will  be  un- 
able to  resist.  Public  indignation  will  be  kindled  against  you  ; 
infamy  and  contempt  will  overwhelm  you.  This,  in  a  greater  or 
less  degree,  will  be  your  recompense  even  in  the  present  life. 
And  remember  too,  that  a  day  of  final  reckoning  is  at  hand, 
when  the  Lord  will  judge  you  for  all  your  evil  surmises  and  hard 
speeches  against  his  ministers,  and  in  the  presence  of  assembled 
worlds  will  say  to  you  ; — inasmuch  as  ye  did  it  unto  one  of  the 
least  of  these  my  servants,  ye  did  it  unto  me. 

The  subject  of  this  discourse  is  doubtless  familiar  to  the  min- 
isters of  Christ  now  present.  Your  own  experience,  my  dear 
brethren,  has  often  led  you  to  consider  the  value  of  a  good  name, 
and  the  essential  difference  between  regarding  it,  as  a  means  of 
gratifying  the  pride  of  the  heart,  and  as  a  means  of  promoting  the 
great  object  of  your  holy  calling.  There  is,  however,  one  view 
of  the  subject  which  I  would  suggest,  as  specially  deserving  of 
your  attention  ;  1  mean  the  regard  which  ministers  owe  to  the 
reputation   of  each  other.     Would   to  God   that  this  duty  were 


17 

properly  attended  to,  nnd  that  the  language  of  Christian  minis- 
ters respecting  one  another  were  always  the  language  of  mutual 
tenderness,  and  candor,  and  love.  If  it  is  so  criminal  for  other 
men  to  slander  ministers,  it  is  still  more  criminal  for  ministers  to 
slander  one  another,  or  in  any  way  to  deft-act  from  one  another's 
reputation.  It  ought  to  be  our  invariable  resolution,  that  no  one 
who  sustains  the  sacred  office,  shall  ever  have  his  character  or 
usefulness  injured  by  us.  If  any  minister  loses  his  good  name, 
or  his  influence,  let  it  not  be  by  any  injustice  or  heedlessness  on 
our  part.  On  the  contrary,  let  us  do  all  in  our  power,  by  fair 
and  honest  means,  to  shield  the  reputation  and  increase  the  use- 
fulness of  every  one  of  our  brethren  ;  so  that  the  world  around  lis 
may  have  occasion  to  say ;  behold,  hoiv  these  ministers  lore  one 
another ! 

But  important  as  this  duty  is,  there  is  one  of  still  greater  im- 
portance ;  I  mean  the  duty  of  taking  care  of  our  own  character. 
Our  friends  may  be  ever  so  solicitous  for  our  reputation,  and  ever 
so  watchful  to  shield  us  from  calumny.  But  what  will  their  so- 
licitude avail  us,  unless  we  ourselves  are  awake  to  the  subject, 
and  carefully  avoid  whatever  would  expose  our  character  to  re- 
proach or  suspicion.  With  an  unsullied  reputation,  we  may  do 
much  for  the  cause  of  Christ ;  without  it,  all  our  labors  will  be  of 
little  value.  Let  us  then  guard  this  precious  treasure  with  con- 
stant vigilance.  It  were  better  for  us  to  bring  upon  ourselves 
sickness,  or  poverty,  or  any  other  earthly  calamity,  than  to  do 
any  thing  which  would  in  the  least  injure  our  good  name. 

I  apprehend,  brethren,  that  we  are  generally  too  inattentive  to 
the  importance  of  this  subject.  The  word  of  God  makes  it  es- 
sential to  every  one  who  bears  the  ministerial  office,  that  he 
should  be  of  good  report.  We  cannot  trifle  with  our  reputation, 
we  cannot  neglect  to  guard  it  from  injury,  without  neglecting  a 
most  sacred  duty.  For  in  truth,  our  reputation  is  not  our  own. 
We  owe  it,  and  all  the  power  which  it  gives  us  to  do  good,  to 
our  blessed  Redeemer  ;  and  we  should  faithfully  use  it,  as  we 
should  every  other  talent  entrusted  to  us,  for  the  promotion  of  his 
cause.  Let  us  then,  for  the  sake  of  our  usefulness,  and  for  the 
credit  of  our  holy  calling,  be  solicitous,  by  all  proper  means,  to 
3 


18 

preserve  and  increase  our  reputation.  For  this  purpose,  let  us 
be  good  men,  and  good  ministers  of  Christ ;  full  of  faith  and  good 
works.  Let  us  cultivate  piety  to  God,  and  benevolence  to  man. 
In  the  exercise  of  Christian  discretion,  let  us  scrupulously  avoid  not 
only  what  is  positively  sinful,  but  what  is  of  a  doubtful  character. 
In  so  doing,  brethren,  you  may  quietly  trust  your  character  with 
God,  who  will  hide  you  in  the  secret  of  his  pavilion  from  the 
strife  of  tongues.  If  at  any  time  you  are  assaulted  with  calumny  ; 
steadily  pursue  your  great  work ;  be  faithful  to  God  ;  and  cast 
the  care  of  your  good  name  upon  him.  Guard  your  heart 
against  every  emotion  of  resentment  or  ill  will  against  those  who 
speak  evil  of  you.  Never  return  railing  for  railing,  or  evil-speak- 
ing for  evil-speaking,  but  contrarywise  blessing.  Think  less  of 
what  you  suffer,  than  of  those  imperfections  which  render  the 
suffering  necessary.  Look  unto  Jesus,  who  endured  the  con- 
tradiction of  sinners,  and  copy  his  meekness  and  love  and  for- 
giveness. 

If  amid  the  agitations  of  this  changing  world,  your  reputation 
is  sometimes  obscured  by  a  few  dark  clouds ;  those  clouds  will 
quickly  pass  away.  Even  in  this  life,  the  righteous  providence  of 
God  will  generally  bring  to  light  the  integrity  of  his  ministers. 
And  the  all-revealing  day  is  at  hand,  when  the  voice  you  will 
hear,  will  not  be  the  voice  of  reproach  from  your  enemies,  nor  of 
complaint  from  misjudging  friends ;  but  the  voice  of  your  merci- 
ful Saviour  and  Judge,  who,  in  the  presence  of  the  assembled 
universe,  will  say  ;  Well  done,  good  and  faithful  servants,  enter 
ye  into  the  joy  of  your  Lord.  And  there,  in  that  holy,  happy 
kingdom,  of  which  no  minister  of  Christ  can  ever  feel  himself 
worthy,  you  may  hope  to  forget  all  the  reproaches  and  sufferings 
of  your  earthly  state,  and  to  be  crowned  with  glory,  honor,  and 
immortalitv. 


10 


Address  to  the  Pastor  elect. 

My  dearly  beloved  Brother  ; 
The  circumstances  of  the  present  occasion  are  peculiarly  in- 
teresting to  my  feelings ;  and  I  am  sure  they  must  be  so  to  yours. 
It  is  now  three  years  since  it  became  my  duty,  as  a  committee  of 
the  American  Temperance  Society,  to  announce  to  you  your  ap- 
pointment as  general  Agent  of  that  Society,  and  to  endeavour,  by 
various  considerations,  to  persuade  you  to  accept  the  appoint- 
ment, and  to  undertake  the  arduous  work  of  pleading  the  cause 
of  Temperance  before  the  American  public.  That  you  might  be 
at  liberty  to  do  this,  it  was  found  necessary  that  you  should  re- 
sign the  charge  of  a  very  beloved  church  and  society.  God 
knows, — and  we  know  in  some  measure, — what  a  sacrifice  you 
made,  when,  from  a  regard  to  the  good  of  the  community,  you 
gave  up  the  pastoral  care  of  your  flock.  And  it  affords  me  plea- 
sure on  this  occasion  to  recall  to  mind  the  disinterested  attach- 
ment to  the  public  welfare,  which  your  people  evinced,  when  they 
consented  to  part  with  a  minister,  who  had  so  successfully  labor- 
ed for  their  good,  and  who,  in  so  high  a  degree,  enjoyed  their  love 
and  confidence. — During  these  three  years,  it  has  been  my  hap- 
piness, so  far  as  my  other  duties  would  permit,  to  be  associated 
with  you  in  consultation,  in  prayer,  and  in  effort,  for  the  suppres- 
sion of  a  far-spread  and  destructive  vice,  and  the  promotion  of  a 
most  important  public  virtue.  It  must  be  regarded  as  a  subject  of 
special  thanks  to  God,  that  in  the  benevolent  but  arduous  enterprise, 
in  which  you  and  others  have  been  engaged,  more  has  been  ac- 
tually accomplished  by  the  labors  of  three  years,  than  we  could 
have  expected  from  the  labors  of  twenty.  Be  this  wholly  and 
forever  to  the.  praise  of  God,  from  whom  come  all  good  designs, 
and  all  good  endeavours,  and  all  success.  And  now,  my  bro- 
ther, let  it  be  a  comfort  to  your  heart,  that  God  has  made  you  an 
instrument  of  so  much  good  to  jrour  fellow-men,  and  thai  this 
good  has  been  accomplished  in  so  short  a  time,  and  that  divine 
Providence  so  soon  permits  you  to  return  to  the  office  which  von 
love  above  every  other, — the  office  of  a  Christian  pastor. 


20 

And  as  you  have  now  closed  the  important  agency  which 
you  undertook,  suffer  me,  my  brother,  not  only  for  myself,  but  in 
behalf  of  the  American  Temperance  Society  and  its  Executive 
Committee;  in  behalf  of  the  community  at  large  ;  and  in  behalf 
of  the  thousands  who  have  been  benefited  by  your  labors,  sin- 
cerely to  thank  you  for  your  faithful  services.  These  services,  I 
well  know,  have  cost  you  many. a  sacrifice,  many  a  season  of 
exhaustion,  and  weeping,  and  agony  of  heart.  But  you  have  not 
been  without  a  reward.  You  have  enjoyed  that,  which  is  among 
the  best  pleasures  ever  enjoyed  on  earth,  the  pleasure  of  labor- 
ing successfully  in  a  great  and  good  cause.  Amid  your  va- 
rious exposures  in  a  most  difficult,  and  in  some  respects  hazard- 
ous enterprise,  your  life  and  health  have  been  the  care  of  a  watch- 
ful Providence.  And  while  you  have  been  making  a  fearless  and 
uncompromising  attack  upon  the  favorite  indulgencies,  the  deep- 
rooted  habits  and  prejudices  of  men  in  every  rank  of  life,  your 
character  has  been  safe.  And  you  are  now  receiving  the  most 
gratifying  proofs  of  the  gratitude,  respect,  and  confidence  of  an 
enlightened  public.  Through  the  kindness  of  God,  you  are  cal- 
led to  resume  the  pastoral  office  with  most  encouraging  prospects 
of  usefulness.  I  rejoice,  my  dear  brother,  and  heartily  congrat- 
ulate you,  that  after  the  efforts,  so  wearisome  to  body  and  mind, 
which  you  have  made  to  help  forward  the  Temperance  Reforma- 
tion, you  are  invited  to  return  to  this  beloved  circle  of  ministers 
and  churches;  to  settle  again  here,  in  the  bosom  of  your  tried 
friends ;  to  settle  here,  in  this  united  and  respectable  church  and 
society  ;  and — what  must  fill  your  heart  with  the  tendercst  emo- 
tions,— to  settle  so  near  to  your  former  beloved  charge.  The 
Lord  command  his  blessing  upon  you,  and  upon  your  household. 
The  Lord  be  continually,  as  he  has  been,  your  strength  and  your 
shield  ;  and  give  you  the  privilege,  for  many  happy  years  to 
come,  of  feeding  this  beloved  church  and  society  with  the  bread  of 
life,  and  of  beholding  in  this  place,  and  all  around  you,  the  growing- 
prosperity  of  Zion.  And  when,  according  to  a  proposal  of  the 
American  Temperance  Society,*  to  which  yon  and  your  people 

"  See  Note  at  the  end. 


21 

have  kindly  acceded,  you  shrill,  from  year  to  year,  lend  a  portion  of 
your  services  to  the  cause  of  Temperance;  may  you  find  that  cause, 
so  dear  to  your  heart,  in  a  state  of  higher  and  higher  advance- 
ment, and  may  your  labors  help  to  secure  to  it  still  greater  triumphs. 

Thus,  dear  brother,  may  you  fill  up  the  remnant  of  your  days  with 
benevolent  and  successful  action,  and,  if  need  be,  with  suffering 
too,  for  Christ  and  his  cause;  and  when  you  shall  have  finished 
the  work  which  he  has  given  you  to  do,  may  you  be  a  partaker 
of  the  glory  that  shall  be  revealed.  \  1 1:  s  . 


22 


NOTE. 

The  proposal  referred  to  is  contained  in  the  following  Resolutions  of  the 
Executive  Committee  of  the  American  Temperance  Society,  passed  Sept. 
13,  1830;  to  wit; 

"  Whereas  the  Rev.  Nathaniel  He  wit,  D.  D.  General  Agent  of  the  Amer- 
ican Temperance  Society,  lias  heen  invited  by  a  very  respectable  Church  and 
Society  in  Bridgeport,  Conn,  to  settle  with  them  in  the  ministry;  and  as  in 
these  circumstances  it  is  suitable  that  the  Executive  Committee  should  ex- 
press to  him  their  views  respecting  his  continuance  in  the  important  work  in 
which  he  is  now  engaged  ;  therefore, 

Resolved,  that,  in  the  judgment  of  this  Committee,  the  labors  of  tho 
Rev.  Dr.  Hewit  have  been  eminently  successful  in  promoting  the  Tempe- 
rance Reformation  in  this  country,  and  that  it  is  highly  important  that  his  en- 
gagement in  the  service  of  the  Society  be  renewed,  should  he  find  himself  at 
liberty  to  decline  his  present  call  to  return  to  the  pastoral  office. 

Resolved,  that,  in  case  the  Rev.  Dr.  Hewit  should  determine  in  favor  of 
settling  in  the  ministry,  this  Committee  deem  it  very  important  to  the  cause 
of  Temperance,  that  he  should,  with  the  consent  of  his  Church,  reserve  to 
himself  the  right  of  engaging,  at  least  three  months  in  a  year,  in  an  agency  for 
tho  American  Temperance  Society." 


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